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Jasper`s Health

Took Jasper to the vet today as he has been coughing a bit the last few days, we had taken him to the vet in October, to have his anal glands done and he also has a sebaceous cyst that had got bigger, the vet also checked his heart , we knew he had a murmur, he said it was grade 3, and to keep an eye on him, anyway we went today and saw a different vet, she gave him a good check over, and said his murmur is grade 4, must have got worse ,he needs to have his teeth cleaned, so it looks as if when he goes back next week he will be knocked out and have an xray, his teeth cleaned and the cyst removed, now I`m dreading next week, although it`s better to get this all sorted out in case the murmur gets worse, he will be 9 in March, so he`s getting an old man.

I'm so sorry about Jasper. My only recommendation would be to see if you can get him in to see a cardiologist before he has his teeth cleaned and the cyst removed. When Oz was diagnosed with his murmur, the cardiologist sent the vet a list of anesthestic agents that would be o.k. to use on him for his neutering. And if a regular vet diagnosed it as a grade 4 and he's couging, I would strongly advise getting under the care of a cardiologist. They may want to get his coughing under control before his surgery. Good luck.

I would cancel the dental & cyst appointment until he sees a cardiologist. Sounds to me like he should be taking medicine for his heart. Definitely have a conversation about anesthesia with both the cardiologist and your vet to make sure your vet has the safest anesthesia drugs.

Thank you all for your advice, the vets we go to is a veterinary hospital with good facilities, they have a MRI scan there, I have been on their website and the senior vet it qualified in vet cardiology, is this the same , excuse my ignorance but this is all new to me.

Jasper was taken to the vets yesterday for the day, and we had a phone call in the middle of the morning to say he had been sedated for the xray and that the vet had decided not to clean his teeth or remove the cyst until he had been put on medication so we had an appointment to see her later, she said it was the usual cavalier heart problem and showed us the xray and his heart was enlarged also water around the lungs so he has been put on water tablets for the moment and Fortekor tablets for life, she took some of the tartar off his teeth but will wait for a while and monitor him before she decides if to do the teeth later or the cyst , we go back again next week , he came home a bit miserable and we had a most dirty glare when he got home and sat back in the chair.

Hi Sue, Jasper is fine with us now, he must have forgiven us, I felt so guilty putting him through this but it is all for the best. Jasper is nearly 9, and he has had a murmur for about 18 mths. but he had been coughing quite a bit recently, he stiil enjoys is excercise, but apparently the vet said they cough more when they are laid down. I have been really worried about him, I am a natural worrier and as you say it is difficult to carry on as normal and they seem to pick on this, he was very agitated on the way to the vets, as he was the week before, although he loves the car, we actually took him out in the car last weekend so he would`nt associate the car with the vets. Is luka on medication, I hope you get all his problems sorted out soon.